Грамматика русского языка. Часть 4. Безударные гласные. Глава 2. Безударные Ы, Е, И и Я. Russian Grammar. Part 4. The Unstressed Vowels. Unit 2. The Unstressed Ы, Е, И and Я.

The Unstressed Ы

The unstressed ы, usually occurring at the end of a word, sounds something like a cross between the uh-sound in lemon and the true sound of the ы.

Examples:

вазы [vah-zih] vases
куклы [kook-lih] dolls
красный [krahs-nihy] red (m.)
умный [oom-nihy] intelligent (m.)

The Unstressed Е, И, and Я

Before a Stressed Syllable

The unstressed е, и, and я also become less distinct. They sound something like the short i in city.

Examples:

леса [l'ee-sah] woods
лиса [l'ee-sah] fox
мела [m'ee-lah] (she) swept
мила [m'ee-lah] nice (f.)
яйцо [yee-tsaw] egg
пятно [p'eet-naw] spot

After a Stressed Syllable

When the unstressed е, и, and я come after a stressed syllable, they sound shorter and weaker and much less distinct (without completely becoming a short i) than they did in the preceding examples where they came before the stressed syllable.

море [maw-ree] sea
книги [kn'ee-gee] books
дядя [d'ah-dee] uncle
поле [paw-l'ee] field
мальчик [mahl'-cheek] boy
память [pah-meet'] memory

To appreciate the difference between the stressed and unstressed е, и, and я, compare the following sets of words:

лес [l'ehs] wood
леса ['lee-sah] woods
мел [mehl] chalk
мела [m'ee-lah] (she) swept
мил [m'eel] nice (m.)
мила [m'ee-lah] nice (f.)
прямо [pr'ah-muh] straight (adv.)
прямой [pr'ee-mawy] straight (adj., m.)